Louisiana Republicans Gain Historic Power As Longtime Democrat Switches Parties

Republican lawmakers in Louisiana gained a significant advantage after a Democrat who served for decades as a state representative switched parties. Francis Thompson recently changed his party registration to become a Republican, giving the GOP a two-thirds supermajority in both chambers of the state legislature. This marks the first time Republicans have had such an upper hand in the state’s roughly 210-year history. As a result, they can now override vetoes by Democratic Governor John Bel Edwards. Thompson insisted that his values have not changed, even though he has a conservative voting record.

Thompson joined Republicans in recent years to call for a veto override session. This included a failed effort in 2021 to override legislation that would have prevented biological male athletes from competing in girls’ and women’s sports. However, Governor Edwards did not go through with another veto to stop a transgender sports ban last year.

Although Louisiana has trended red in recent decades, Democrats in the state were not surprised by Thompson’s decision to switch parties. House Democratic Caucus Chairman Sam Jenkins shrugged off the news, noting that Thompson already caucused with Republicans.

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